pabloconrad said:
What you lose is ambient pressure. The O2 levels are the same. With less pressure, your engine has to fight to get the proper amount of air into the cylinders, therefore, you lose HP just getting more air. You essentially are choking your engine.
True. To a point. If you lose ambient pressure, then you are altering the volumetric contents of each cubic foot of air taken in. With less pressure, the air expands, which is why soda bottles are so hard to open when you increase altitude, and why Twinkie wrappers almost pop on your trip up to one of our fourteeners. The ratio of the gases in the atmosphere remain constant up to around 80km, true. But for each cubic foot of air your engine digests, it is getting exponentially less O2 the farther up you drive. To be exact, 3.3% less per 1000 feet traveled vertically. You are indeed getting the same volume of air into the cylinders, but each gas in the air is taking up more space at higher altitudes. So, the O2 level is NOT the same at altitude, but the ratio is.
This is the whole reason I explained the loss of RELATIVE O2. Not Acutal. But whatever...the guy will lose performance when he drives out this way, as he made it clear he is not from a high-altitude area.
Here's a thought question or 3: Is it really possible that the loss of atmospheric pressure itself is choking the engine? Do all the cylinders really have to struggle that much harder to get CFM's moving? Or is it really just ingesting air that is quantitatively deficient in O2?
Hope I am not coming off as a jerk here. It's not my intention. I just wanted to clarify and back up some of the facts I have. Thanks, Pablo, for adding to the clarity and for volunteering to do what you do! BTW, it's mighty impressive at the ripe age of 100 that you are doing all this!
I am not sure what finding any of the computer systems in the Jeep will do for you at this point, as there are several involved, not just the ECM. I think you should just get out here and responsibly enjoy what CO has to offer!